Whats the best dryer exhaust vent?

I just cleaned out the dryer cabinet interior as I smelled a burning odor while drying clothes. I found lots of scorched lint inside when I removed the dryer back panel. Now that the dryer has been cleaned I'm planning on upgrading the vent where it terminates under an eave and would appreciate any suggestions for one with backdraft protection as well as not being too restrictive as far as airflow. Thanks

Whats the best dryer exhaust vent?

Fires start in dryer vents because of lint buildup. Lint buildup occurs because the walls on some types of vents, particularly flexible aluminum ducting, are accordion shaped, and lint sticks in the folds. Rigid galvanized or aluminum duct is far better because it is smooth on the inside, much lower chance of lint sticking. This assumes proper assembly, meaning no screws which stick through and can catch lint. Best is to assemble using metallic duct tape.

As for melting aluminum, it melts at 1220 degrees F. The average fire in your fireplace burns at around 550 degrees F, however the individual charcoal bits can be considerably hotter than that, so I believe it is possible that in a lint fire aluminum could melt. The point of the smooth duct is that you should not have a lint fire. Note that it is possible for lint to build up inside the dryer regardless of the duct used, my neighbor nearly burned down their house several years ago this way. So it is a good idea to clean the dryer periodically regardless of duct type.

Whats the best dryer exhaust vent?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Daniel Holzman

Fires start in dryer vents because of lint buildup. Lint buildup occurs because the walls on some types of vents, particularly flexible aluminum ducting, are accordion shaped, and lint sticks in the folds. Rigid galvanized or aluminum duct is far better because it is smooth on the inside, much lower chance of lint sticking. This assumes proper assembly, meaning no screws which stick through and can catch lint. Best is to assemble using metallic duct tape.

As for melting aluminum, it melts at 1220 degrees F. The average fire in your fireplace burns at around 550 degrees F, however the individual charcoal bits can be considerably hotter than that, so I believe it is possible that in a lint fire aluminum could melt. The point of the smooth duct is that you should not have a lint fire. Note that it is possible for lint to build up inside the dryer regardless of the duct used, my neighbor nearly burned down their house several years ago this way. So it is a good idea to clean the dryer periodically regardless of duct type.

The recommendation to clean the dryer periodically is spot on. I had never done this before until I recently smelled a burning odor while drying clothes. I had cleaned out the dryer vent so that wasn't the issue. Removing the back of the dryer showed how much lint accumulated inside. I think most of the reason for this is that the manufacturer never bothered to seal the exhaust pipe to the fan blower housing, which allows lint to escape into the interior. I sealed that joint with foil tape and will check again in a few months to see how much lint builds up inside.